The Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), which has 1.6 million members, has just taken a woman to its head. This was on the sidelines of its 13th Annual Congress held in Midrand, South Africa, from September 17th to 20th.
More than 2,000 union delegates, representatives of grassroots organizations affiliated to Cosatu, representatives of federations and international organizations took part in this congress which theme was "Deepen the back to pasics campaign, consolidate the struggle for the national democratic revolution, Advance the struggle for socialism ".
The Congress was characterized by discussions on how to rebuild COSATU and ensure that it continues its mission of defending the interests of South African workers.
The election of comrade Losi as well as the 50-50 gender parity of the new executive is a great victory for trade union democracy, and a model for female leadership marking a new chapter in the history of COSATU.
Comrade Losi, who became the first woman president of the trade union federation, started her career as a trade unionist in the powerful National Union of Metalworkers (Numsa) and was the second vice president of the organization under Tyotyo James and Sdumo Dlamini.
